Doghousesmall
Doghouse
16006
Still (Collector's Edition)
(2007)
Joy Division
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Label: Rhino-Atlantic
Duration: 2:11:27
Genre: Post Punk

Ian Curtis' death prompted a flood of bootlegs and similar "tributes," likely motivated more by profit than anything else. Seeking to trump this problem -- though arguably coming from much the same standpoint -- Factory issued Still in 1981, a haphazard if still useful collection of odds, ends, and more. Considering that the band's many singles weren't properly compiled until much later on Substance, Still makes only partial sense -- the studio cuts were mostly outtakes, while the live songs had their own problems. Of the studio takes, only two tracks had seen formal release beforehand -- the mesmerizing post-punk meets R&B groove of "Glass" and the searing "Dead Souls," certainly both worthy of even more listens. Beyond that, things were more hit and miss, with strong instrumental performances given to slightly indifferent songs and vice versa. The anthemic "Something Must Break" is one of the best, while the nervous "Ice Age" is an agreeable enough thrash and "The Only Mistake" a melodramatic but still effective effort. Other numbers like "The Sound of Music" and the heavily compressed pound of "Walked in Line" sound more like sketches on the way to becoming truly great songs. A live ringer concludes the studio half, a fair enough take on the Velvet Underground's "Sister Ray" (at under half the length) which concludes with Curtis' wry joke, "You should hear our version of 'Louie, Louie'!" The remainder of Still is a rather morbid gift for fans -- a middling recording of the final Joy Division show, mere days before Curtis' death. A fierce, invigorating rip through "Ceremony," formally recorded later as New Order's first single, suffers from Curtis' vocal going missing at the start, while the remainder of the show finds the singer either too detached or too harsh, the other musicians doing an OK but not great job themselves. The takes on "New Dawn Fades" and "Decades" in particular tarnish rather than enhance Joy Division's memory. [Rhino's 2007 reissue contains the album in remastered form on the first disc. A second disc features the band's February 20, 1980 appearance at High Wycombe Town Hall, including six songs from the soundcheck. Jill Furmanovsky's photos, Peter Saville's design, and Jon Wozencroft's liner notes make up the booklet.]

Amazon Review
2007 digitally remastered and expanded two CD edition of the influential Manchester quartet's 1981 posthumous compilation album. Joy Division's influence on modern music is not only based around the band's unique sound, but also their vision, their personalities and their intense and troubled vocalist, Ian Curtis who committed suicide on the eve of their first tour of the U.S. Disc One features the original album containing 20 tracks including live and previously unreleased studio tracks. Disc Two features 14 tracks recorded live at High Wycombe Town Hall in February of 1980. Rhino UK.

2007 Digitally Remastered and Expanded Edition of the Legendary Manchester Band's Final Official Album that Tied Up Many Loose Ends at the Time of It's Release. The First Disc of the Original Album Included Recordings the Group Made as Warsaw (Their First Incarnation) and Other Recordings that Didn't Make the Cut on their Two Studio Albums. Some of the Tapes were Augmented with Overdubs by the Surviving Band Members to Flesh them Out for Release. The Second Disc was a Recording of their Final Gig Together in Birmingham University. This Special Reissue Adds a Plethora of Bonus Live Recordings from a Gig at High Wycombe Town Hall in February 1980 from Both the Concert and the Soundcheck that Night plus a Recording of the Band Covering Lou Reed's "Sister Ray" from a Gig in London at the Moonlight Club.


TrackDuration
Exercise One3:06
Ice Age2:24
The Sound Of Music3:55
Glass3:55
The Only Mistake4:16
Walked In Line2:46
The Kill2:14
Something Must Break2:48
Dead Souls4:53
Sister Ray [Live at the Moonlight Club, London April 1980]7:36
Ceremony [Live at Birmingham University]3:50
Shadowplay [Live at Birmingham University]3:57
A Means To An End [Live at Birmingham University]4:01
Passover [Live at Birmingham University]5:10
New Dawn Fades [Live at Birmingham University]4:06
Transmission [Live at Birmingham University]3:47
Disorder [Live at Birmingham University]3:24
Isolation [Live at Birmingham University]3:05
Decades [Live at Birmingham University]5:44
Digital [Live at Birmingham University]3:38
Sound Of Music [Live at High Wycombe Town Hall, Feb. 20, 1980]4:19
A Means To An End [Live at High Wycombe Town Hall, Feb. 20, 1980]3:57
Colony [Live at High Wycombe Town Hall, Feb. 20, 1980]4:06
Twenty Four Hours [Live at High Wycombe Town Hall, Feb. 20, 1980]4:20
Isolation [Live at High Wycombe Town Hall, Feb. 20, 1980]2:49
Love Will Tear Us Apart [Live at High Wycombe Town Hall, Feb. 20, 1980]3:14
Disorder [Live at High Wycombe Town Hall, Feb. 20, 1980]3:13
Atrocity Exhibition [Live at High Wycombe Town Hall, Feb. 20, 1980]5:58
Isolation (Soundcheck)3:00
The Eternal (Soundcheck)3:36
Ice Age (Soundcheck)3:16
Disorder (Soundcheck)3:14
Sound Of Music (Soundcheck)4:05
A Means To An End (Soundcheck)3:45
Original Release: 1981-10-30
Composer: Joy Division
Arranged By: Joy Division
Producer: Martin Hannett
UPC: 81227996031